[SunnyG.]

I'm a photographer on a budget. Planning to buy Pentax K-S2, previously used to shoot with Canon 1200D. So my real question is do I need to have a back up Camera? If yes, should I go for a Pentax K10D in mint condition with 3500 clicks, and flawless body for 130$ or should I go for a 10000 clicks Pentax K-7 with near mint condition for 199$? Your thoughts are welcomed. A lot of my enthusiast buddies told me to have back up Camera to fall back on. A couple of days ago I saw Pentax K-5 being auctioned off for 350$ with 500 clicks, I think.

[DougieD]

I'd probably go for the K-7 simply because it has front/back focus correction. I don't think the K10D does.

[TheOneAndOnlyJH]

Whether or not you 'need' to have a backup camera really depends on what you're going to use it for. If you're going to be shooting events or weddings than by all means, you should probably have a backup. It's also nice to be able to use two different lenses on different bodies so you don't have to keep changing between them. If you still have the 1200D, that could still serve as an emergency backup too, but you'd need to keep some Canon lenses.

If you're going to use it for personal or studio use and could survive a week or two without it, you could be fine without a backup. Pentax DSLR's are pretty durable, so the $200 you would spend on a second body now might get you a better body when you actually need it a year or two down the road.

---------- Post added 06-20-17 at 05:24 PM ----------

If you don't have a need to use two lenses at once, you can kind of think of a second body as a type of insurance. If you don't have one and your main camera breaks, you might have to spend extra if you need to replace or repair it right away. You just need to consider if the cost of this 'insurance' is worth it for you.

Just a note, I've put probably 40,000 clicks on my K-3 I've the past 3 years with no problem. If I had bought a backup, it would just be sitting around unused and losing value. Photography is only a hobby for me though, so in a pinch I can always make do with my phone.

[CarlJF]

I totally agree with TheOneAndOnly. Unless you can't live for a few hours or days without a camera, a backup isn't needed. It's always possible to walk up in a store and buy a backup camera if the need ever arise, which will probably be never.

[Fenwoodian]

Whether or not you 'need' to have a backup camera really depends on what you're going to use it for. If you're going to be shooting events or weddings than by all means, you should probably have a backup. It's also nice to be able to use two different lenses on different bodies so you don't have to keep changing between them. If you still have the 1200D, that could still serve as an emergency backup too, but you'd need to keep some Canon lenses.

If you're going to use it for personal or studio use and could survive a week or two without it, you could be fine without a backup. Pentax DSLR's are pretty durable, so the $200 you would spend on a second body now might get you a better body when you actually need it a year or two down the road.

---------- Post added 06-20-17 at 05:24 PM ----------

If you don't have a need to use two lenses at once, you can kind of think of a second body as a type of insurance. If you don't have one and your main camera breaks, you might have to spend extra if you need to replace or repair it right away. You just need to consider if the cost of this 'insurance' is worth it for you.

Just a note, I've put probably 40,000 clicks on my K-3 I've the past 3 years with no problem. If I had bought a backup, it would just be sitting around unused and losing value. Photography is only a hobby for me though, so in a pinch I can always make do with my phone.

Right on!

Pentax cameras are extremely rugged and reliable. I have never had one fail even under the roughest of environments. However I have had failures of third party equipment (like batteries, flashes, memory cards). Stick with Pentax brand for top notch quality and reliability.

[TheOneAndOnlyJH]

That's another good point. I have had both a card failure and a battery that out off nowhere started only lasting a few minutes, so having at least one extra battery and memory card is always a good idea.

There's a lot to be said about aftermarket batteries vs OEM, but my advice is to buy a pair of aftermarket batteries so you have three total. As long as you remember to keep them charged you won't be caught by surprise by a failing battery. Charge them all with the original Pentax charger though, since aftermarket chargers tend to overcharge them at a higher voltage.

---------- Post added 06-20-17 at 11:10 PM ----------

As for memory cards, sticking to Pentax might be a bit limiting. 😉 Definitely stick to well known brands for reliable memory though. SanDisk, Samsung, Transcend, and PNY are brands that I've had no issue with.

[timw4mail]

Right on!

Pentax cameras are extremely rugged and reliable. I have never had one fail even under the roughest of environments. However I have had failures of third party equipment (like batteries, flashes, memory cards). Stick with Pentax brand for top notch quality and reliability.

Unless you go back to the film autofocus era...where plastic gears WILL fail.

I have a Micro 4/3 as my "backup" camera, since it can share most lenses with my K-S1 via an adapter. (But then again, I am a primarily manual shooter)

[E-man]

If you were going to get a backup camera for not a lot of money, you could do a whole lot worse than a K10D.

[disconnekt]

Like others here have said, if your doing a photo job or personal photo project then I'd suggest getting a backup. If not, put that extra money towards getting either a K70 or (if you don't have any yet) good glass.

But depending on how tight your budget is, go with the KS2+Good quality glass. Either way, Pentax is pretty much known to have their entire lineup dslr's be really rugged.

[SunnyG.]

I'd probably go for the K-7 simply because it has front/back focus correction. I don't think the K10D does.

The k-7 seems like a fine piece of equipment. It is really good.

---------- Post added 06-21-17 at 01:01 PM ----------

Whether or not you 'need' to have a backup camera really depends on what you're going to use it for. If you're going to be shooting events or weddings than by all means, you should probably have a backup. It's also nice to be able to use two different lenses on different bodies so you don't have to keep changing between them. If you still have the 1200D, that could still serve as an emergency backup too, but you'd need to keep some Canon lenses.

If you're going to use it for personal or studio use and could survive a week or two without it, you could be fine without a backup. Pentax DSLR's are pretty durable, so the $200 you would spend on a second body now might get you a better body when you actually need it a year or two down the road.

---------- Post added 06-20-17 at 05:24 PM ----------

If you don't have a need to use two lenses at once, you can kind of think of a second body as a type of insurance. If you don't have one and your main camera breaks, you might have to spend extra if you need to replace or repair it right away. You just need to consider if the cost of this 'insurance' is worth it for you.

Just a note, I've put probably 40,000 clicks on my K-3 I've the past 3 years with no problem. If I had bought a backup, it would just be sitting around unused and losing value. Photography is only a hobby for me though, so in a pinch I can always make do with my phone.

Well that's really good advice! Now that I think about it, I would be better of buying some good glass with that money.

---------- Post added 06-21-17 at 01:02 PM ----------

Like others here have said, if your doing a photo job or personal photo project then I'd suggest getting a backup. If not, put that extra money towards getting either a K70 or (if you don't have any yet) good glass.

But depending on how tight your budget is, go with the KS2+Good quality glass. Either way, Pentax is pretty much known to have their entire lineup dslr's be really rugged.

They sure are, could be used as a weapon for self defence. They are built like tanks.

---------- Post added 06-21-17 at 01:04 PM ----------

If you were going to get a backup camera for not a lot of money, you could do a whole lot worse than a K10D.

Don't think 10mp would cut it. But it's the last Pentax DSLR camera to use CCD sensor. Barring the the Pentax 645D

---------- Post added 06-21-17 at 01:10 PM ----------

That's another good point. I have had both a card failure and a battery that out off nowhere started only lasting a few minutes, so having at least one extra battery and memory card is always a good idea.

There's a lot to be said about aftermarket batteries vs OEM, but my advice is to buy a pair of aftermarket batteries so you have three total. As long as you remember to keep them charged you won't be caught by surprise by a failing battery. Charge them all with the original Pentax charger though, since aftermarket chargers tend to overcharge them at a higher voltage.

---------- Post added 06-20-17 at 11:10 PM ----------

As for memory cards, sticking to Pentax might be a bit limiting. 😉 Definitely stick to well known brands for reliable memory though. SanDisk, Samsung, Transcend, and PNY are brands that I've had no issue with.

I was researching about cards. From what I read those flu-cards seem to be really slow. Is it worth buying? Does Pentax support CF cards? I saw some great deals on Amazon. Lexar 1066x 32Gb for 30$ with 160mbps speed. From the reviews it seems Lexar is a pretty reliable brand. What do you think? CF cards or SDHC? As cards are very pathetic. Slow as Af. Unless you include UHS-II

[Skodadriver]

I am going on holiday to Spain with my wife, K-5 and a back up P&S, probably either my Nikon S9100 or S8200. Both bought for around $50 each secondhand. My reason for this is that my wife will not use a DSLR, preferring her venerable Canon Powershot which has taken many images (on Auto) for her over the years and with which she is comfortable. In the event anything happens to her camera she could use the Nikon with very little needed in the way of explanation of what she needs to do to use it, just set it to auto and off she goes.
A plus for me is that I can carry a P&S in my trouser pocket if humping a DSLR and a couple of lenses about in the heat is too much for me.
My back up sorted!

[SunnyG.]

I am going on holiday to Spain with my wife, K-5 and a back up P&S, probably either my Nikon S9100 or S8200. Both bought for around $50 each secondhand. My reason for this is that my wife will not use a DSLR, preferring her venerable Canon Powershot which has taken many images (on Auto) for her over the years and with which she is comfortable. In the event anything happens to her camera she could use the Nikon with very little needed in the way of explanation of what she needs to do to use it, just set it to auto and off she goes.
A plus for me is that I can carry a P&S in my trouser pocket if humping a DSLR and a couple of lenses about in the heat is too much for me.
My back up sorted!

Well you could also do that with a Mirrorless, provided the lens is not mounted.

[danielchtong]

I'm a photographer on a budget. Planning to buy Pentax K-S2, previously used to shoot with Canon 1200D. So my real question is do I need to have a back up Camera? If yes, should I go for a Pentax K10D in mint condition with 3500 clicks, and flawless body for 130$ or should I go for a 10000 clicks Pentax K-7 with near mint condition for 199$? Your thoughts are welcomed. A lot of my enthusiast buddies told me to have back up Camera to fall back on. A couple of days ago I saw Pentax K-5 being auctioned off for 350$ with 500 clicks, I think.

If I were you, I will only go for the new or used camera using the same type of lit battery. I shoot mainly prime lenses and I always bring 2 cameras. Using the same battery gives me an ease of mind when I am out in the field.

[TheOneAndOnlyJH]

I was researching about cards. From what I read those flu-cards seem to be really slow. Is it worth buying? Does Pentax support CF cards? I saw some great deals on Amazon. Lexar 1066x 32Gb for 30$ with 160mbps speed. From the reviews it seems Lexar is a pretty reliable brand. What do you think? CF cards or SDHC? As cards are very pathetic. Slow as Af. Unless you include UHS-II

Pentax DSLR's do NOT use compact flash, they use SD cards. Modern SD cards aren't really that slow either. You can find a good, fast 64GB SD card for about $35. Lexar makes good cards too, but I hate their '1066x' crap. (Nobody measures in multiples of audio CD read speeds anymore.)

A good card with 80-90 MB/s read AND write speeds will last you for a while yet without becoming obsolete. Even a 45-60 MB/s card will work fine, it'll just lag a little during long bursts at max frame rate and might be slightly less responsive when cycling through images in playback.

If you look up reviews on Amazon people often attach Crystal Disk Mark benchmark screenshots so you can get past the marketing speak and see how good the card actually reads and writes.

[SunnyG.]

If I were you, I will only go for the new or used camera using the same type of lit battery. I shoot mainly prime lenses and I always bring 2 cameras. Using the same battery gives me an ease of mind when I am out in the field.

Thanks for the advice. I will keep that in mind. Though right now, I'm better off investing in glass. Maybe after I have out grown the K-S2. It'll become my back up Camera.

---------- Post added 06-21-17 at 02:23 PM ----------

Pentax DSLR's do NOT use compact flash, they use SD cards. Modern SD cards aren't really that slow either. You can find a good, fast 64GB SD card for about $35. Lexar makes good cards too, but I hate their '1066x' crap. (Nobody measures in multiples of audio CD read speeds anymore.)

A good card with 80-90 MB/s read AND write speeds will last you for a while yet without becoming obsolete. Even a 45-60 MB/s card will work fine, it'll just lag a little during long bursts at max frame rate and might be slightly less responsive when cycling through images in playback.

If you look up reviews on Amazon people often attach Crystal Disk Mark benchmark screenshots so you can get past the marketing speak and see how good the card actually reads and writes.

Well, thb, marketing is just crap, they never give so much speed as advertised, a 90mbps card will rarely go over 70mbps, no matter what. Too bad Pentax still does not support other formats. The end user would have much more flexibility in choosing a card.